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A is for Bee: An Alphabet Book in Translation
by Ellen Heck
Age Range: 6-8
What letter does the word bee start with? To English speakers the answer is B but in many other languages it is something completely different – Bee is Anũ in Igbo, Ari in Turkish, Aamoo in Ojibwe and Abelha in Portuguese. The last letter in the English alphabet is Z which is used for Zebra for an animal alphabet but in some languages, Z is for elephant – zaan in Mongolian, zehon in Amharic, Zō in Japanese and zilonis in Latvian.
A is for Bee: An Alphabet Book in Translation is US-based printmaker Ellen Heck’s debut picture book. She came up with the innovative concept for the book after reading a Lithuanian alphabet book to her son. Turning the usual animal alphabet picture book on its head allowed her to explore the diverse range of languages from around the world and the different letters used for a variety of animals.
The process of putting this book together was complex as Heck explains in the Author’s Note at the back of the book. Each of the words used in the book was confirmed with native speakers, but even then, different speakers of the same language can have different ideas about correct transliteration. There are 69 languages represented in the book which is only a fraction of the more than 6,500 spoken across the world.
Together with Heck’s eye-catching richly coloured graphic scratchboard details and hidden letter forms, this unusual and inspiring book is a wonderful way to introduce an array of different languages to young children in a fun and original way.
To see our interview with Ellen Heck go to the Educations Zone, Articles, Authors and Illustrators.






























































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































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